FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, May 18, 2004

Media General Reports April Revenues

RICHMOND, Va. – Media General, Inc. (NYSE: MEG) today reported April 2004 revenues of $86.1 million, an increase of 6 percent, compared with revenues of $81.2 million in April 2003. Publishing revenues increased 3.4 percent, Broadcast revenues rose 10.4 percent, and Interactive Media revenues were up 52.2 percent.

“Media General’s April revenues principally reflected strong political advertising on several of our broadcast television stations and continued improvement in newspaper classified advertising, especially in the employment category,” said J. Stewart Bryan III, chairman and chief executive. “Increased Broadcast time sales also reflected higher local transactional sales and continued healthy automotive advertising. In Publishing, for the second consecutive month, we experienced a double-digit gain in classified advertising. Classified growth offset declines in retail and preprint advertising revenues, which reflected the acceleration of some Easter advertising into March and continued softness in department store advertising,” said Bryan.

Publishing Division advertising revenues increased by $1.4 million, or 3.2 percent, from the same period last year. If print and online publishing revenues are combined, publishing total revenues and advertising revenues for April were up 4.0 percent and 3.8 percent, respectively, from 2003.

Classified revenues increased $1.8 million, or 11.4 percent, and nearly every Media General newspaper market exceeded last April’s results. The Tampa Tribune and the Winston-Salem Journal generated classified increases of 12.4 percent and 11.1 percent, respectively, and the Richmond Times-Dispatch was 6.3 percent above last year. April employment linage at the three metropolitan newspapers was 20.4 percent higher than last year. Employment linage at the Richmond Times-Dispatch increased 18.6 percent, and The Tampa Tribune was up 10.9 percent. The Winston-Salem Journal experienced a 45.9 percent increase, reflecting the benefit of a special employment supplement.

Retail revenues decreased by $785,000, or 5.8 percent. Retail declines were most evident in the metropolitan markets and were closely linked with the earlier occurrence of this year’s Easter holiday. Preprint revenues were below last year by $170,000, or 2 percent, and reflected weakness at all three metropolitan newspapers, partially offset by solid results at the community newspapers. On a combined basis, retail ROP and retail preprint revenues decreased from 2003 by 4.4 percent.

National revenues were approximately even with last year. Circulation revenues increased $340,000, or 4.0 percent, and reflected primarily a home delivery rate increase at the Richmond Times- Dispatch in October 2003 and strong circulation gains at The Tampa Tribune.

Broadcast gross time sales increased compared to last year by $2.6 million, or 9.1 percent, the increase mainly generated by presidential campaign spending and strong local transactional sales.

Local time sales increased $1.3 million, or 7.5 percent, led by increases in the automotive, services, telecommunications and fast food categories. National time sales declined somewhat, due to decreases in the corporate, entertainment and fast food categories. Political revenues of $1.7 million compared with $360,000 in 2003. The gain reflected presidential campaign spending in Florida, Alabama and Iowa; U.S. Senate primary spending in South Carolina, and issue advertising in Florida and Alabama.

According to the Television Bureau of Advertising’s Group Survey for the first three months of 2004, Media General’s total time sales increased by 13.0 percent compared to industry growth of 9.3 percent. For local time sales, Media General achieved a 10.1 percent increase compared to the industry’s 9.3 percent. For national time sales, Media General had an 18.3 percent increase versus the industry growth rate of 9.5 percent.

In the Interactive Media Division, April’s revenues of $1.3 million were the highest monthly total since the division’s inception in January 2001. The increase primarily reflected Classified advertising increases, and the local and national/regional advertising categories also were higher compared to last year.

About Media General
Media General is an independent communications company situated primarily in the Southeast with interests in newspapers, television stations and interactive media. The company’s publishing assets include The Tampa Tribune, the Richmond Times-Dispatch, the Winston-Salem Journal and 22 other daily newspapers in Virginia, North Carolina, Florida, Alabama and South Carolina, as well as nearly 100 other periodicals and a 20 percent interest in The Denver Post. Media General’s 26 network-affiliated television stations reach more than 30 percent of the television households in the Southeast and nearly 8 percent of those in the United States. The company’s interactive media offerings include more than 50 online enterprises. Media General also has a 33 percent interest in SP Newsprint Co., which operates newsprint mills in Dublin, Ga., and Newberg, Ore.

Investor Contact:
Lou Anne Nabhan
(804) 649-6103

Media Contact:
Ray Kozakewicz
(804) 649-6748

Charts follow:
Revenue Report
Ad Linage Summaries

(1 of 3)